Simon Stephen Milne MBE FRGS (born January 1959) is a British marine officer and conservationist who has been Regius Keeper of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh since 2014.
Simon Milne | |
|---|---|
| Regius Keeper of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh | |
| Assumed office 24 February 2014 | |
| Preceded by | Stephen Blackmore |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Simon Stephen Milne January 1959 (age 65) |
| Spouse |
Françoise Milne (m. 1993) |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | University of St Andrews Royal Naval College, Greenwich |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Branch/service |  Royal Navy Marines |
| Years of service | 1976–2000 |
Early life and military career
editBorn in 1959, Milne was educated at the University of St Andrews and the Royal Naval College, Greenwich.[1][2] He was commissioned into the Royal Marines in 1976 and served in Northern Ireland and Bosnia.[3] He was appointed a member of the Order of the British Empire in 1996. He reached the rank of lieutenant colonel and was invalided in 2000. He was later made a member of Her Majesty's bodyguard of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms in July 2011.[4]
Conservation career
editMilne was director of the Sir Harold Hillier Gardens and Arboretum from 2000 to 2004 and chief executive of the Scottish Wildlife Trust from October 2004 until February 2014. Starting in 2007, he co-led the trial reintroduction of the European beaver to Scotland, with the Scottish Wildlife Trust working alongside the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland.[5] He is the founder of the World Forum on Natural Capital and has specific interest and expertise in translocations, public engagement with the natural environment, biodiversity conservation and ecosystem scale approach.
Milne was appointed the 16th Regius Keeper of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh in February 2014, replacing botanist Stephen Blackmore.[6] He is a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and was conferred an honorary professor of the University of Edinburgh, associated to the School of Biological Sciences in January 2016.
Personal life
editMilne married his wife Françoise in 1993 and the couple have three children together. Originally from France, she applied for dual-nationality following the 2016 EU referendum but her application was rejected, leading the couple to publicly criticise the uncertainty created by Brexit.[7][8]
References
edit- ^ "Simon Stephen MILNE - Personal Appointments (free information from Companies House)". beta.companieshouse.gov.uk. Retrieved 2020-03-31.
- ^ "Around the Botanics in 350 Years". Royal Scottish Society of Arts. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
- ^ O'Donoghue, Dan (2017-12-03). "Queen's bodyguard in Brexit limbo as his French wife denied residency card". Daily Record. Retrieved 2020-02-09.
- ^ "British Monarchy Court Circular on Facebook". Facebook.
- ^ "Scheme to boost beaver population". BBC News. 2007-10-01. Retrieved 2020-03-31.
- ^ "BBC Scotland: New Regius Keeper for Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh". BBC News. 2013-12-10.
- ^ Ellson, Andrew. "Royal bodyguard's French wife faces Brexit boot". The Sunday Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2020-02-09.
- ^ Jackson, Russell. "Botanics chief hits out at Brexit uncertainty facing French wife". The Scotsman. Retrieved 2020-02-09.